Failure gave Pinnacol’s Isakson plenty to learn

Mark Isakson tried sales — and though he learned then that he loved working with people, it was only if he didn’t have to sell them anything.

“I couldn’t sell anything to save my life and I learned that quickly,” he said of his stint as a financial adviser with Bank of Colorado. He also said failure can be the best teacher and that he’s grateful to have learned something about his strengths and weaknesses early in his career.

So he joined Pinnacol Assurance in 2001 as an underwriter trainee. He’s moved to where today, he’s an associate vice president.

State-chartered Pinnacol Assurance sells workers’ compensation insurance in Colorado and is required, by law, to issue such insurance when other companies won’t. Pinnacol has more than 55,000 Colorado-based policyholders.

“I love that we exist to help provide an important service,” Isakson said. “We fulfill a very important role in the Colorado business community. This organization’s purpose is to ensure that other businesses are protected and that we help protect their greatest assets, their employees.”

Isakson is responsible for the company’s underwriting and pricing strategy, and also oversees the long-term and short-term financial planning.

After a couple of months as an underwriter trainee, the Colorado native became a large-account underwriter, where he managed an account of $15 million in annual premiums, with roughly 200 policyholders.

Next, he was promoted to business director, where he was responsible for directing a $60 million annual premium regional business team of about 30 insurance professionals.

“As a business director, I was responsible for providing strategic direction, fostering team culture, supporting individuals’ growth and development through coaching and performing management, and ensuring achievement of annual business plan financial and customer service objectives,” Isakson said.

Transitioning from an underwriter to a business director was a challenge.

It meant “going from being responsible for your book of business and managing your customers to taking on the responsibility for the success of an entire team,” he said.

He added that, “In the Colorado marketplace, we’re the No. 1 carrier in terms of both market share, but also [in] the quality of what we do — our claims-management operation, our safety services and the underwriting piece.”

Given the economic environment, “The entire industry is dealing with historically low yields on investments, which puts an incredible amount of pressure on insurance company’s underwriting results and operations,” he said.

Insurance companies have focused on preventing workplace injuries, but also, Isakson has seen an additional focus on maintaining a healthy workforce.

For example, “The obesity epidemic has been noted as potentially the No. 1 one threat to workers’ compensation insurance,” Isakson said.

That’s why the insurance industry must explore ways to “influence lifestyle behavior choices to transcend well beyond the workplace,” he said.

“One of the things that separates us is looking at these things out in front of us and getting in front of them early and often,” Isakson said about the industry challenges.

In 2008, Pinnacol started an initiative, a free “health risk management” program, to improve the health of its customers’ employees.

When Isakson finished college, he moved to New Jersey to work for GAF Materials Corp., a roofing materials manufacturing company. He was a business analyst who was exposed to many business functions, including purchasing raw materials, scheduling production, marketing strategies and competitive positioning. He was promoted to a junior product manager, and was involved with such functions as purchasing raw materials, marketing and sales.

After one year, he moved back home to Colorado.

Outside the office, Isakson sits on the leadership board at his church, where he and his wife are part of a team planning to build a new church in Castle Rock.

Isakson also has volunteered, through both company programs and nonprofit organizations, for Junior Achievement-Rocky Mountain Inc., Volunteers of America, Bonfils Blood Center drives, Food Bank of the Rockies, Pinnacol In Action and more. Employees run the Pinnacol in Action volunteer program, which helps 12 Colorado nonprofits.

Isakson has been married to Sarah for 12 years and they have four children, ages 8, 6, 2 and 1.